Welsh secretary Jo Stevens has unveiled funding of £13.5m to support businesses and workers impacted by job losses at Tata Steel.
The funding was agreed by the previous government as part of a £500m deal that will see blast furnaces closed in south Wales with the loss of nearly 3,000 jobs and the construction of a greener electric arc furnace at Port Talbot.
Unions are negotiating with Tata Steel over redundancy terms, timings and are still looking to save as many jobs as possible.
Stevens, who visited Port Talbot on Thursday, said the £13.5m would support local businesses that were heavily reliant on Tata as their main customer. Money would also be available to workers affected by the transition, which ministers said would help them find new jobs, access training and gain skills.
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More than 50 businesses have pledged to support workers who may face job losses due to the transition. These businesses, including Fintech Wales, The Royal Mint, Cardiff Metropolitan University, RWE Energy, Ledwood Mechanical Engineering and Pro Steel Engineering, will offer interviews, training and coaching to affected employees.
Rototherm, a global manufacturer of temperature and pressure measurement devices, is among the companies in Tata Steel’s supply chain likely to be affected by the transition.
Its managing director Oliver Conger said his firm was very willing to offer help to any affected workers at Tata Steel and any suppliers affected. He added: “I believe that if businesses like ours from across the area can come together, we can offer a lot of practical support that will make a big difference to people and the impacted supply chain.”
Business and trade secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “This funding is an important step towards supporting workers affected by Tata Steel’s transition and businesses in the wider supply chain.
“We’re working in partnership with trade unions and industry to secure a green steel transition that’s right for the economy, our talented workforce and local communities for generations to come, and our negotiations with Tata remain ongoing.”
Stevens said the funds were the first to be released through the Transition Board since it was set up 10 months ago under the previous government and would “address the immediate emergency caused by the uncertainty around Port Talbot’s future.”
Charlotte Brumpton-Childs, GMB national officer, said the funding was a “welcome sign of the reset this new government offers”. She added: “We are keen to hear further about the government’s commitments to fast and targeted support for industry. It is vital for steelworkers, contractors and their communities, and the wider economy.”
Tata Steel UK’s chief executive Rajesh Nair, said earlier this week: “The Transition Board plays a very important role in supporting the transformation of our business to low-CO2 steelmaking and encouraging regeneration and inward investment to the area, while helping to mitigate the impacts those changes may have on our people, our supply chain and our communities.”
The electric arc furnace could cut direct CO2 emissions by 50 million tonnes over a decade – reducing Wales’s emissions by 22%.
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